


NOVEMBER

by Anne_Carter



Series: A Year In The Life [6]
Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Explicit Language, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-25
Updated: 2018-02-25
Packaged: 2019-03-23 22:46:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13797942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anne_Carter/pseuds/Anne_Carter
Summary: “That son-of-a-bitch!”  Xavier actually flinched.  Alicia’s temperament was shaky on even the best of days.  “Maybe I can work from home,” he mused.  He was startled when the door of his office slammed open.  Alicia stood in the doorway, papers in her hand, and murder in her eyes.  “Do you know what the slimy bastard’s done now?”  “Uh…which slimy bastard?” Xavier innocently asked.  “I’m a lawyer. There are so many in my line of work.”Seth faces a crisis.  Dean gets help with the monsters.  A Thanksgiving get-together.  The McMahon plot continues.





	NOVEMBER

Stick a man in prison long enough and curiosity will get him to agree to see a visitor even if he doesn’t know who it is or what the visitor wants. Wade Barrett had used that tactic more than once and Jerry Ambrose was no exception to that rule.

As an investigator for Paul Heyman’s law firm in general and Heyman in particular, he’d visited the Florida State Prison many times. From experience, he knew that adopting an attitude of ‘I don’t give a fuck’ and ‘don’t fuck with me, asshole’ was the best attitude to project after entering the prison itself.

When entering the visitors’ room, the guard checked his identification and then the paper on his clipboard. 

“Cubicle 8.”

Barrett nodded and casually walked down the row of cubicles. He automatically tuned out whatever conversation he could hear from the other cubicles. It wasn’t his business.

Jerry Ambrose was already sitting on the other side of the shatterproof barrier when he sat down in his own chair. Ambrose looked every bit as dangerous as his file presented him to be. Barrett instinctively took in the short-cropped reddish hair, narrowed blue eyes, and muscular build. He almost felt sorry for Heyman’s client.

Barrett picked up the phone receiver mounted on the cubicle wall next to him and waited. When Ambrose didn’t respond, he held up five fingers and slowly counted down. He had two fingers left when Ambrose picked up the receiver on his side.

“Whadda ya want?”

The voice was raspy and gravelly. Barrett idly wondered who he was getting the cigarettes from.

“The name of your attorney. Your trial attorney says he no longer represents you.” Barrett kept his voice low and level.

“That fucker,” Ambrose growled. “I don’t have an attorney. Whatever it is, send it to the warden of this joint. Let him figure it out.” 

Curiosity won out in the end just as Barrett knew it would.

“Why’re ya askin’?”

“Your wife’s divorcing you.” Barrett thinly smiled. “Divorce papers have to be sent to someone on your behalf.”

“Bitch.” Ambrose chuckled. “So she’s getting out, huh? Sold the parole board some sob story about how big bad Ambrose dragged her down to such a depraved level?” 

Barrett shrugged. “I’ve no idea,” he answered. “But…could be.”

“Listen, that good-for-nothing bitch did nothing was leech offa every man she could get her nails into,” Ambrose complained. “She says I got her hooked on smack? Bullshit! She was using when I met her. Cleaned herself up when she got knocked up though. Then went right back on it as soon as she whelped.” He grunted. “Never thought the little bastard was my kid anyway. All he did was cry. Day and night. Night and day.”

Barrett shrugged. “I don’t know anything about babies, but I guess they cry a lot.”

“Every stinking hour of the day!” Ambrose snorted. “Bitch complained I was never around. Well, I wonder why…huh…she spread her legs for any man who could keep her high enough so she didn’t have to listen to that brat squall all day.”

Barrett grunted.

“Then when I **was** home, she’d just bitch and moan about not having money…the rent’s due…no food…kid’s screaming.” Ambrose’s eyes narrowed even further. “So, yeah, I may’ve knocked her around a little just to shut her up. Had to do the same with the kid only he was too stupid to shut up. Just look at me and cry some more.”

“So I guess you won’t be contesting the divorce,” Barrett smiled.

“Hell, no. Let the bitch be somebody else’s problem.”

Barrett nodded. “Did you know your son was adopted?”

Ambrose leaned forward. “Like I said. Bastard’s probably not mine anyway.”

Barrett glanced at his watch. “Then we’re done here.”

“Whatever.” Ambrose slammed the receiver back into place and stood to leave.

Barrett replaced the receiver, stood, and walked out of the visitors’ room. Curiosity had won again.

 

Roman lounged in the doorway of their sons’ bedroom and leaned against the door jam, crossing his arms over his chest. He watched as Bayley gently kissed Seth’s forehead and smoothed Dean’s curls. Both boys were fast asleep in Dean’s bed with Yorkie stretched out on the foot of the bed.

Bayley turned around and sweetly smiled at her husband. “Sorry,” she whispered as she joined him in the doorway. “I just wanted to check on them one more time.” She stood on tip-toe and kissed his bearded chin before walking to their bedroom.

Roman watched her walk away then glanced at his sleeping sons. Shaking his head, he followed his wife to their bedroom. He saw Bayley standing by her vanity, hand inside an open drawer.  
“Sweetheart, are you okay?”

Bayley chuckled. “I’m fine. But I need to ask you to do something for me.”

“Sure.”

Bayley turned around and held out the charm bracelet he’d given her a few months ago. The silver charms with their names and birthstones glittered in the light. “Can you add a charm on this for me? Not now, but for maybe next April?”

Roman frowned. “Why would…” His grey eyes saddened widened. “Bayley?” He slowly grinned. “Something you’d like to tell me?”

“The guest room needs to be made into a nursery,” Bayley chuckled. “I’m pregnant.”

Roman swooped her up into his arms and twirled her around. “God, I love you,” he murmured. “You’re sure? You saw the doctor?”

Bayley wrapped her arms around Roman’s neck. “That’s where I was this morning. All confirmed. No idea yet if it’s a boy or girl.”

“Girl.” Roman gently set Bayley onto their bed and knelt in front of her. “A little girl who looks just like her beautiful mother.”

 

Bayley lay in their bed curled up against her husband, his arms securely around her. “I’m kinda worried about telling the boys,” she admitted.

“Why’s that?” Roman drowsily asked, his fingers playing in Bayley’s dark hair.

“I don’t want Dean to think…that…”

“…that this baby makes him even more different,” Roman softly finished her thought.

“Yeah.” Bayley looked up at him. “And I’m afraid Seth is going to feel neglected. He’s always been the youngest.”

“And might get jealous of the attention to the baby,” Roman added. He saw Bayley’s worried expression and hugged her. “We’ll figure it out, baby girl. We’ll make it work.” He glanced down at his wife. “How long have you known?”

Bayley hesitated. “I thought I was last month, but I’d been wrong before so I didn’t say anything. I’m just past 3 months.” She looked up to meet his eyes. “I wanted to be sure before I said anything.”

“Think we should wait to tell them until we know if it’s a boy or girl?” Roman asked.

Bayley laughed. “Sweetheart, I’m pretty sure I’m going to start showing any day now. It may be a month of more before we find **that** out. The boys will be asking questions way before then.”

Roman grunted. “We can tell them this weekend.”

“Then we can tell Sasha,” Bayley nodded. “And Shane.”

Roman suddenly laughed.

“What?” Bayley looked at him in confusion.

“You probably got pregnant while we were on vacation,” Roman pointed out. “We did leave the kids with Shane and Becky a couple of times.”

Bayley’s lips twisted trying to hold back her laughter. “He’ll probably try to take credit for it,” she finally chuckled.

“The hell he will!”

 

“So, Dean, how have things been going? Doing okay in school?” Kofi Kingston studied the three dominoes on the table then slowly put a domino next to a double two.

“It’s good.” Dean wiggled onto his knees and stared at the table then at his dominoes. “We dressed up for Halloween.” He looked at Kofi with a grin. “I was an astro’aut. Me and Finn, he’s my cousin, we’re gonna go to Mars!”

“Whoa!” Kofi nodded in approval. “Awesome, Dean!”

Dean nodded in agreement then put a domino on the table. “Five to five. Right?”

“Perfect. Any plans for Thanksgiving?”

Dean shrugged. “We always went to Granpapa and Granmama’s. But we don’t go there anymore. They don’t like me and Daddy. And Kevin and Randy were mean to me and shoved Seth at school. So Mommy and Daddy said we don’t have to go there anymore.”

“How do you feel about that?” Kofi asked, putting a domino down next to Dean’s five.

Dean shrugged again. “Their house wasn’t fun.” He peeked up at Kofi. “Not my fault.” His voice was half-question half-statement of fact.

“Absolutely not,” Kofi agreed. “If they don’t like you and are mean to you, there’s no reason to be there.”

Dean suddenly slumped back in his chair. “They keep coming back. The monsters. Tellin’ me I’m a bad boy,” he whispered.

“What do you do then?” Kofi gently asked.

Dean shrugged. “Sometimes they go ‘way when I tell them they’re lying. Sometimes they just scream louder that I’m a bad boy.”

“Are you?”

Dean’s blue eyes narrowed. “No,” he firmly answered. His face twisted into a scowl. “I want ‘em to leave!” He slammed his hand down on the pile of dominoes sending them sliding across the table.

Kofi slowly nodded.

“When aren’t the monsters there?” When Dean remained silent, Kofi slightly leaned forward. “Dean?”

“I dunno,” Dean mumbled. “They just are…and aren’t.”

Kofi gently smiled. “How about we try something to figure that out?”

Dean curiously glanced up at the therapist. 

“We could ask your Mommy or Daddy…or both to help,” Kofi suggested. “Each morning, you tell them if the monsters came or if they didn’t. Your parents can match that up with how things are going with you. If you had a hard day at school or not feeling well or something like that. If we figure that out, we can work on changing those things.”

Dean vehemently shook his head.

“Why not?”

“Don’t want them doing it to them!” Dean snapped.

Kofi quickly translated the boy’s statement. “You’re saying you’re worried the monsters will go after your parents?”

Dean nodded.

Kofi firmly shook his head. “The monsters can’t hurt your parents. They can’t show up in the night or yell at them or touch them.” He noticed Dean’s slight flinch. “I promise you that, Dean. Your parents will be safe. And so will Seth.”

Dean looked down at the table for several seconds, then wiped a hand across his eyes. “Not crying,” he muttered.

“Doesn’t matter,” Kofi assured him. “We all cry sometimes.” He waited a few moments then gently prodded. “So should we let Mommy and Daddy help?”

Dean slowly nodded. “Okay,” he whispered.

 

“So all we do is ask Dean if the monsters showed up?” Bayley asked, more than a little confused.

Roman nodded. The two were sitting in the living room, enjoying tea and coffee after putting the boys to bed. “It’s sorta like trying to figure out what triggers a migraine. At least that’s how Kofi explained it.”

“So maybe the monsters come because something happened to him that day,” Bayley mused.

Roman nodded. “Or stressed him out. Or reminded him of something subconsciously.” He shook his head. “Dean was scared the monsters would come after us and didn’t want to do it at first.”

“Let them try,” Bayley snapped. “I’d show them who’s the boss.”

Roman chuckled. “My money’s on you any day of the week.”

Bayley elbowed him in his side, then leaned in against him as Roman wrapped an arm around her. “Oh, by the way, I invited Sasha to Thanksgiving dinner. She ran into some last minute deadlines and isn’t going to be able to fly up to Boston to be with her family.”

“That sucks,” Roman grunted. “Yeah, that’s not a problem. We’re just adding one more to the table.” He grinned. “Two if Cookie comes.”

“No feeding the dogs from the table,” Bayley firmly reminded him.

Roman chuckled and sipped his coffee. Then he looked sideways at his wife. “Bayley, my boss is coming for Thanksgiving dinner.”

Bayley nodded, giving him a confused look. “I know. Like you said, we’re only adding one more to the table.”

Roman stared into his wife’s guileless dark eyes, then narrowed his grey eyes in return. “Bayley,” he warned. “No playing matchmaker. He’s my boss…my very nice, very generous boss who is great about letting me work around family obligations.”

Bayley chuckled and settled closer against him. “Oh, Roman. Matchmaking? I wouldn’t think of it.”

 

Paul Heyman looked up as Wade Barrett strolled into his office. Paul leaned back in his leather chair and grinned. “How forthcoming was Mr. Ambrose?”

“He’s a surly bastard,” Wade calmly replied. He sat in the chair across from Paul. “Not going to contest the divorce. Bad-mouthed his soon-to-be-ex wife and kid who he claims may not be his,” he snorted.

“Really?” Paul leaned back and folded his hands across his stomach.

“Claims your client was already hooked on smack when he met her. Was only off it while pregnant. He didn’t have one good thing to say about your client,” Wade grunted.

Paul pursed his lips in thought. “Any way to prove he’s lying?”

Wade shrugged. “He’d never make a good witness. I doubt anybody would believe a word coming out of his mouth. I didn’t. Your client would definitely win the sympathy vote.”

“Excellent.”

“Oh, and he said to send the divorce papers to the warden,” Wade laughed.

“I’ll have Otunga take care of that,” Paul shrugged. “As for the soon-to-be-ex Mrs. Ambrose, I’m working on her petition to regain custody of her son. The ‘surly bastard’s’ attitude just makes my job easier.”

 

Seth’s dark eyes flickered from his Mommy to his Daddy and back to his Mommy, an uneasy feeling in his stomach. His parents had been talking quietly and looking funny at each other all day. He looked across the table at Dean who was cheerfully eating his dinner and trying to convince their parents that tomorrow would be a good day to go to the beach.

Seth turned his head towards the patio door as he heard the rumbling of thunder in the distance.

Roman laughed. “Sorry, Dean, but I think it’s supposed to rain tonight and tomorrow. Not good for going to the beach.”

Dean frowned and shoved some French fries into his mouth.

Seth looked back down at his plate. He gathered his remaining fries and held them out to his Daddy. “Give to Dean please?”

“Sure.” Roman took the fries and handed it to Dean who promptly grinned and shoved them into his mouth. 

“Thank you, Seth,” he managed to say as he chewed.

Roman exchanged a grin with Bayley.

Seth’s dark eyes narrowed. _‘Hope Mommy isn’t friends with Aunt Step’nie again. Don’t wanna be with them. Fuck Kevin and Randy!’_ Defiantly he took a gulp of juice and set his cup down with more force than usual.

“Careful, Seth,” Bayley warned.

Dean looked across the table and a small frown appeared.

Seth looked down at his plate. “No more,” he muttered.

Dean looked at his brother’s plate to see if there were any fries left. None. He sighed and ate the last of his grilled cheese sandwich. “I’m done,” he announced.

Roman glanced at Bayley. “Why don’t we go out on the deck before it starts raining? Mommy and I want to talk with you boys.”

Seth had a fleeting look of satisfaction on his face.

“We didn’t do anything,” Dean whined.

“Nobody’s in trouble,” Bayley assured him with a hug.

Outside, Yorkie made a beeline for the sandbox then looked behind in confusion when the boys didn’t follow. He slowly walked back to the deck.

Bayley sat down in one of the lounge chairs while Roman sat in a lounge chair next to her and pulled both boys onto his lap.

“What Mommy and I want to tell you is that we’re going to have an addition to our family,” Roman began.

“A new puppy?” Dean eagerly asked.

“A kitty?” Seth pleaded.

Roman stared at them in consternation while Bayley chuckled. “Uh…no, guys. I think Yorkie is pet enough, don’t you?”

“We love Yorkie,” Seth nodded.

Bayley leaned forward. “Would you love Yorkie just as much if we did get another puppy? Or kitty?”

Both boys nodded.

Roman grinned, seeing where Bayley was going.

“Oh, I’m so glad you said that!” Bayley grinned. “Because we not getting a new puppy or a kitty. But you **are** going to have a new little brother or little sister.”

The boys stared at each other for a few seconds then back at their parents.

“Probably next April…in the spring…the baby will be here,” Roman continued. 

Seth looked from his Daddy to his Mommy.

“Why then?” Dean curiously asked.

“Well, that’s just how long it takes,” Bayley answered.

“Can’t you just get the baby from Am’zon?” Dean frowned. “Stuff comes fast from there.”

Roman chuckled and Bayley laughed.

“Sorry, honey, Amazon doesn’t have babies,” Bayley finally answered.

“Oh.”

Seth suddenly threw back his head and screeched. He began hiccupping then crying and dramatically threw his head onto his Daddy’s chest.

Roman grunted a little at the impact and automatically wrapped his arms around his youngest son.

 **“I’m the baby brother! Like being the baby brother! Now I’m not no more!”**

Roman glanced at Bayley who was frowning.

“You will if the baby’s a little sister,” Dean calmly pointed out.

 **“I don’t wanna little sister! She’ll just play with dolls! And pink! Everything’ll be pink!”** Seth loudly sobbed.

Yorkie whined, and Dean got down from his Daddy’s lap and went to sit with the puppy. He began patting Yorkie to calm him down.

“Seth, I was a little sister,” Bayley gently pointed out. “And I played some with dolls but I also played softball. And played on swings and slides. And I never liked pink.”

Seth just hiccupped and cried harder.

Roman buried his head into Seth’s hair, trying not to smile. He wouldn’t have been surprised if Seth had begun yelling “My life is over!” Instead he gently rocked his son, cooing in his ear, “It’s okay, baby boy. You’ll still be our baby boy.”

After a few minutes, Seth grunted, “Nuh-uh. Baby will.” He slowly sat up and wiped the tears from his face. “I go play.”

“Seth…” Roman began but stopped when Bayley shook her head.

Seth climbed down and ran to the sandbox. He sat down and began using a shovel to dig up sand and put it into a bucket.

Dean slowly left the deck and went to the sandbox, Yorkie following behind him. When he reached the sandbox, he sat down next to Seth. His fingers played in the sand as he stared at his brother.

“They’ll love us just as much,” he finally spoke. “Just like we’d still love Yorkie if we got another puppy or a kitty.” When Seth ignored him, he continued. “Hey! You’ll get to be a big brother! Like me! It’ll be fun, Seth!”

Seth glared at him. “Don’t wanna be a big brother!” His dark eyes narrowed. “You love the new baby more than me!”

“No, I don’t,” Dean protested.

“You don’t care it hurts me!” Seth angrily snapped. He threw the bucket away and ran to the swings. “Not a good brother!”

Stricken, Dean stared at his brother as he ran away. “Seth?” he whispered.

 

_“Bad boy. Such a bad, bad boy.”_

_“You lie.” Dean peeked up at the monster he could barely see in the dense fog._

__

_“Never any good. Not for anything.”_

__

_“I am a good boy.” The child stubbornly boasted._

__

_“Cry baby. All the time cryin’ and cryin’. No good little bastard.”_

__

__

_Dean blinked as the second monster made his appearance. “I don’t cry!”_

__

__

_“You’re such a bad boy. Nobody loves you.”_

__

__

_“Mommy and Daddy and Seth love me!” Dean screamed, his hands curling into fists._

__

__

_“No, they don’t. How could they? You’re so bad. Seth hates you.”_

__

__

_“No, he doesn’t! He doesn’t!”_

__

__

_“You’re a bad boy and a bad brother.”_

__

__

_Dean covered his ears with his hands. “No!”_

__

__

_“Bad boy. Bad brother.”_

__

__

_**“NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!”**_

 

**“NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!”**

Dean’s scream and Seth’s almost simultaneous shriek of fear accompanied by Yorkie’s frantic barking woke both Roman and Bayley from a sound sleep. Roman was out the door before Bayley had time to get out of bed.

Running into the boys’ room, he flipped on the overhead light and saw Dean thrashing around in his bed, arms and legs hitting and kicking at the air. For once, the sheet was off him and half-way into the floor.

Roman ran to Dean’s bed motioning for Bayley to take care of Seth who was now cowering in his bed, Yorkie held tightly in his arms. 

Seth’s dark eyes were wide in fear as he looked up at his Mommy.

Bayley took Yorkie and put him on the floor. She then picked up her son and carried him out of the room. “Come on, Yorkie,” she quietly spoke.

Roman knelt next to Dean and winced at the boy’s screams. “Dean, wake up. The monsters are gone. Wake up, son.”

**“SETH!!! NOOOOOO!!!”**

Roman dodged one little fist then gently held it in his hand. Kissing the knuckles, he continued to speak. “Seth’s safe. He’s with Mommy. Come back to Daddy, Dean. Open your eyes. You’re safe.”

Dean’s eyes flew open as he sobbed. Then he curled into a tight ball on his side and sobbed.

Seeing that his son was awake, Roman sat down on the bed and pulled the boy into his arms. Hugging him tightly, he repeated, “You’re safe. Seth’s safe. No monsters.” He gently rocked back and forth as Dean’s sobbing slowly stopped.

“I’m bad,” Dean finally spoke.

“No, you’re not,” Roman firmly denied. “You’re such a good boy. Mommy and I are so proud of you, buddy.”

Dean raised his head and wiped his eyes. “Not crying,” he muttered.

Roman sighed and rubbed his son’s back.

“I’m a bad brother.”

“No! Dean, you’re a great brother,” Roman argued.

Dean stubbornly shook his head. “Seth said so.”

Roman’s grey eyes widened. “Seth said you’re a bad brother?”

“Monsters said it, too,” Dean nodded. “Seth’s mad ‘cause he thinks I love the new baby more than him. But I don’t!” He took a gasping breath. “Sethie hates me!”

“No, Seth doesn’t hate you.” Roman held his son close. “Seth’s just upset about the baby. And he took it out on you. Seth was wrong to do that.” He squirmed around until he was lying down on the bed, Dean in his arms. It wasn’t comfortable, but he would make do.

 

Seth hiccupped and bit his finger. He and Mommy had heard everything over the baby monitor.

“Oh, Seth,” Bayley sighed. She wrapped her arms around her younger son and hugged him.

“My fault,” Seth mumbled.

Bayley gently pulled his finger from his mouth and rubbed it. “You were upset. You shouldn’t have said that to Dean, though.”

Seth sniffled. “He a good brother. I’m sorry.”

“I know you are,” Bayley nodded. “And I know it’s hard for you about the new baby. But you know Daddy and I love you and Dean so much. The new baby isn’t going to change that.”

Seth looked up at his Mommy with tears in his eyes. “But I won’t be the baby no more!” he protested.

“You’ll always be our baby,” Bayley promised. “Even when you’re older, and we embarrass you by hugging and kissing you in front of your friends and you say “Moooommm…Daaaadddd…stooooppp”.

“Nu-uh.”

Bayley kissed him on the top of his head. “You’re going to be unique again, you know that?”

“How?” Seth rubbed his eyes.

“You’re still going to be a little brother, but you’re also going to be a big brother as well,” Bayley explained. “You’ll be Dean’s little brother and the new baby’s older brother. All the stuff Dean does for you, you’ll be able to do it for the baby. And Dean will still do big brother things for you.”

Seth hiccupped again. “Sounds hard.”

“It is,” Bayley admitted. “But Dean will help you. And so will Daddy and I.”

Seth winced. “I not hate Dean. I love him. He still want to be my brother?”

Bayley hugged him again. “I know he will.”

Seth rested against his Mommy, relaxing in her embrace. Moments later he looked up at her. “Mommy, what are the monsters?”

“Come on, lay up here with me.” Bayley scooted Seth into the bed and lifted Yorkie who stretched out across the foot of the bed. Then she curled up next to her younger son, running her fingers through his dark hair. “Dean dreams of monsters who scare him and say awful, hurtful things to him.”

“Why?”

“We don’t know,” Bayley admitted. “That’s why Dean’s been going to a doctor. So we can try to figure it out.”

“But…Dean’s not scared of nothin’!” Seth protested. “Not even Randy and Kevin!”

“Randy and Kevin aren’t monsters,” Bayley gently pointed out. She managed not to smile when Seth grunted in disagreement. “These monsters are very scary to Dean, and we’re working to make them go away forever.” Seth was quiet for so long that Bayley thought he’d fallen asleep. Then she heard his soft voice.

“I tell Dean I sorry. I am. I not mean to hurt him. He’s a good brother. I’ll be a good brother to him. And to the new baby. I promise.”

 

The next morning, rain, driven by gusting winds, pelted the windows and patio door. Breakfast was a quiet affair, with Dean silently pushing his food around on his plate. Occasionally, he would eat a few bites.

Roman looked exhausted, having stayed awake all night, fearing Dean would have another nightmare. He drank more coffee than usual, needing the caffeine.

Bayley looked more rested, although there were dark circles under her eyes. She glanced worriedly from her husband to her two sons as she nibbled on her toast.

Seth kept peeking across the table at his older brother who never raised his eyes from his plate. He hesitated, then picked up his slice of bacon. Rather than breaking it in half, he handed the entire piece to his Daddy. “Give to Dean, please.”

Roman slightly smiled at his younger son’s generosity. “Sure, Seth.” He took the bacon and held it out to Dean. “Dean?”

Dean looked sideways at his Daddy. He slowly reached out for the bacon. “Thank you, Seth,” he whispered. He stared at the bacon for a few seconds then placed it on his plate. “I’m done.”

Bayley and Roman exchanged a glance. 

“Okay, I’ll save the bacon for you for later,” Bayley quietly spoke.

Dean silently nodded and slid off his chair. They heard him slowly climb the steps and walk down the hall to the boys’ bedroom.

Seth sniffled and hiccupped twice. “Dean hates me,” he muttered. “He didn’t even eat the bacon!”

Roman stood and picked him up. “Dean’s hurt and scared right now,” he gently explained. “And, yeah, you need to tell him you’re sorry for what you said.” He waited until Seth raised his head and rubbed his eyes. “Remember how you defended Dean when Randy and Kevin said mean things to him?”

Seth nodded.

“You were being a good brother. Remember I told you that?”

Seth nodded again.

“Now you gotta be a good brother again and tell him you’re sorry,” Roman gently told him.

“And I love him.”

Roman kissed the boy’s forehead. “And you love him.”

Seth rubbed his eyes again and nodded. “I do it.”

“Okay.” Roman put the boy down and watched as Seth slowly walked away. Then he sat back down and sighed.

“Do you think we need to call Dr. Kingston?” Bayley quietly asked.

“Let’s see what happens,” Roman said after some thought.

 

Seth stood in the doorway of their bedroom watching as Dean knelt by their play table slowly rolling a toy car back and forth…back and forth…back and…

“I’m sorry, Dean. I was bad to say you’re a bad brother.”

Dean’s head immediately spun around, and he scowled at his younger brother. “Don’t ever say that!” he hissed. “ **Never** say you’re bad! You’re not!”

“But I said a bad thing.” Seth stared down at the floor. “I hurt you.”

Dean shrugged and looked back down at the play table.

Seth walked over and knelt next to him. “You hate me?” he whispered.

“No!” Dean vehemently shook his head. “I just don’t wanna choose…’tween you and the new baby.”

“You don’t gotta choose,” Seth promised. “I’m gonna be a good brother to the new baby. And to you.” When Dean glanced at him, he continued, “You gotta help me learn to be a good big brother ‘cause I was an asshole to you yesterday.” He took a deep breath. “So you can hit me.”

Dean frowned. “Like when I was an asshole to you?”

Seth nodded and braced himself, closing his eyes.

“I don’t wanna hit you,” Dean softly admitted. “Can’t we just play?”

Seth opened his eyes in relief. He really didn’t want to get hit. “What do you wanna play?”

Dean shrugged then pointed under the play table to the boxes of Legos. “Wanna build something?”

Seth nodded then reached out to hug his brother. “I’m sorry. Really really sorry, and I love you, Dean.”

After a second, Dean returned the hug. “It’s okay, and I love you.” Then he reached under the table and began pulling out the boxes.

_‘Monsters better stay away from Dean. Fuck them!’_

 

Dean seemed better throughout Sunday so Roman and Bayley decided to let him to go school and keep his regular appointment on Tuesday afternoon. However, Bayley had a conversation with Kofi Tuesday morning to explain the events of the previous weekend.

Kofi smiled, however, when Dean cheerfully entered the office, waved to him, and went straight into the toy room. He glanced at Roman. “He seems happy.”

Roman gratefully nodded. “Bayley talked with you?”

Kofi nodded. “This morning. She gave me a rundown on when Dean’s monsters showed up. Especially over the weekend.”

Roman sat down in the chair and sighed. “Thankfully, he and Seth made up.”

“And I hear congratulations are in order,” Kofi chuckled.

“Thanks,” Roman smiled. “Seth had a problem adjusting to it which led to…well, everything else happening.”

Kofi nodded and walked towards the toy room. “But he’s okay with it now?”

Roman nodded. “Yeah, he is.”

Kofi walked into the toy room, amused that Dean had set up a domino game. “You like playing dominos, huh?” He sat down across the play table from where Dean sat.

Dean nodded. “It’s fun. Seth doesn’t like it much, but he plays it with me.”

“I hear you’re going to have a new little brother or sister,” Kofi remarked as he placed a domino on the board. “Are you excited?”

“Sorta. Daddy says the baby won’t be here until April.” He shrugged. “Am’zon would get the baby here quicker, but Mommy says they don’t have babies.”

“No,” Kofi chuckled. “They don’t. But that’s not a bad idea.” He watched as Dean put a domino on the board. “How’s Seth with the idea of a new baby?”

“He didn’t like it, but he’s okay with it now.” Dean looked up at Kofi with a grin. “He was bragging about it all day yesterday in school.” He put a domino on the board. “Daddy and Mommy are gonna fix a room for the baby. They said me and Seth can help dec’rate it.”

“Why didn’t Seth like hearing about the new baby?” Kofi asked.

Dean leaned back away from the table. “He likes being the baby brother. I told him he’d still be the baby brother if the new baby’s a sister, but…” he shrugged. He pushed a domino back and forth on the table. “He said I loved the new baby more than him but I don’t! And he got mad and said I was a bad brother. But he said he was sorry for being a bad brother to me.” Defiantly, Dean glared at Kofi. “But he’s **not** a bad brother!”

Kofi nodded. “I agree. Seth sounds like a good brother. He was just hurt for a while.”

Dean nodded. “I told him never to say he’s bad.” He played a domino then peeked up at Kofi. “Would it be wrong for me to give the new baby something Seth gave me?”

“What do you mean?

“When I was in the hosp’tal, Seth gave me a stuffed wolf cub ‘cause he couldn’t sleep with me and wanted me not to be alone even if Daddy was there.” He shook his head. “I’m too old to sleep with a toy. Seth doesn’t sleep with his teddy bear any more either.”

Kofi quickly thought. “A wolf cub, huh? Sounds cool.”

Dean shrugged. “His name is Cubby.”

Kofi played a domino. “You know wolf cubs are very protective.”

Dean stared into Kofi’s dark eyes. “It’s a toy.”

Kofi laughed. “Do you think the monsters know that?”

Dean’s face scrunched up as he thought. “Maybe?”

“Tell you what…how about you keep Cubby with you tonight and tomorrow night,” Kofi suggested. “Then on Thursday, you can tell me if the monsters stayed away.”

Dean scratched his arm. “Okay,” he agreed. “I can try it.” He nodded towards the table. “It’s your turn.”

Kofi played a domino, and Dean quickly matched it. The two played quietly for a few minutes.

“Do you wanna come to our house for Thanksgiving?” Dean suddenly asked. “Aunt Sasha’s coming and Daddy’s boss.”

“Why, thank you, Dean. That’s very kind of you to ask,” Kofi widely smiled. “But I’m having Thanksgiving with my family…my wife and children.”

“You have kids?”

Kofi nodded. “Five of them.”

Dean’s blue eyes widened. “Five! Wow!” He was silent for a few seconds. “Guess that’s how come you’re good with me, huh?”

Kofi chuckled. “It’s easy to be good with you, Dean.”

Dean gave him a skeptical look but didn’t say anything.

“So are you wanting another baby brother or a baby sister?” Kofi asked.

Dean shrugged. “Either, I guess.” He leaned forward and whispered. “But for Seth, I hope a baby sister.”

 

Dean stood in front of the dresser and stared up at the teddy bear and wolf cub. He heard Seth squealing with laughter as Daddy gave him a bath. With a sigh, he walked into the hallway and saw his Mommy coming up the stairs.

“Mommy, can you get Cubby for me?” he quietly asked.

“Sure, honey.” Bayley smiled and patted him on the shoulder. She watched Dean get into his bed and look around uncertainly. “How about I just put him on the end of the bed for you?”

Dean nodded in relief. He really **was** too old to sleep with a toy. “Thank you,” he whispered as Bayley tucked him in with a kiss and hug. “Love you, Mommy.”

“I love you, my Dean.” Bayley watched as he curled up under the sheet.

Seth ran into the room and dived up onto his bed. “I won!” he laughed as Roman ran in after him.

Roman pretended to be gasping for air. “Good run, Seth.”

The younger boy flopped back onto the bed and stretched out.

Roman briefly tickled him, then gave him a kiss and hug. “Love you, Seth.”

“Love you, Daddy. Love you, Mommy,” Seth giggled.

Bayley gave her younger son a kiss and hug. “Nite, Seth.”

“Tell the baby nite,” Seth whispered.

Bayley grinned and nodded.

Roman leaned down and kissed Dean. “Love you, Dean. Sweet dreams.” He’d noticed the grey and white stuffed toy lying on the end of the bed, but didn’t say anything about it.

“Love you, Daddy.”

 

_‘Bad boy. You never learn. You were born bad, and you’ll always be bad.’_

__

__

_Dean defiantly shook his head. “I’m not bad. You lie.’_

__

_‘No good cry baby.’_

__

__

_‘ **Not** crying,’ Dean protested._

__

__

_‘Always crying. Little bastard.’_

__

__

_Dean shivered, not at the words, but at the faint growling from deep inside the surrounding fog. He peeked around and saw the monsters look at each other._

__

__

_The growling became louder._

__

__

_‘I’m not a bad boy! You lie! You lie!’ Dean stomped his foot as he yelled._

__

__

_‘I said you’re…’ The monster threw up his arms to protect his face as something grey flashed past Dean and leaped towards the monster._

__

__

 

Dean sat up in his bed, gasping for air. He wildly looked around the room.

Seth lay sprawled out next to him, one arm dangling off the side of the bed. A slight smile on his face made Dean think his little brother’s dream was a good one.

Dean rubbed his eyes then stared down at the stuffed wolf cub lying at the foot of the bed. He got to his knees and leaned forward to pick up the toy. Sitting back down, he gently squeezed Cubby then brought the stuffed animal close to his face.

“Cubby? Was that you?” he whispered.

 

“Where are the flamingoes?” Dean asked as he, Seth, and Asuka walked onto the playground. 

“I saw them lining up inside,” Asuka quietly answered.

“Yeay! We’re out here first!” Seth laughed.

“Let’s do something besides kick the soccer ball,” Asuka suggested.

Dean shrugged. “We can play tag or something.”

“Zombie tag!” Seth’s dark eyes lit up with excitement.

“Here they come.” Dean pointed to the doorway to the school.

Enzo and Alexa ran towards them each holding the hand of a girl they’d never seen before. She was much bigger than either of the others, with long brown hair braided on either side of her head.

“This is Nia! She’s new!” Enzo exclaimed. “That’s Asuka. That’s Seth. That’s Dean. Seth and Dean are brothers!”

“Hi,” Nia quietly spoke. She shyly looked towards the ground.

“We’re going to play Zombie tag,” Asuka politely spoke. “Would you like to play with us?”

‘I don’t know that game,” Nia muttered.

“It’s easy!” Seth grinned. “Watch!” He started walking with lunching steps and grunted.

Asuka squealed and dodged away from him.

Seth lurched towards Dean and tapped him on the arm. “You’re it!”

“Now Dean’s the Zombie,” Alexa explained. 

“And ‘cause we can run faster than Zombies we gotta stay in this area.” Enzo pointed out the boundaries.

“It’ll be fun!” Alexa grinned.

“Well…okay,” Nia nodded.

“Run!” Alexa squealed. “It’s a Zombie!”

Dean began lurching towards Enzo who scrambled away. Grunting between snickers, Dean lurched towards Nia who stumbled backwards and fell to the ground.

“Are you okay?” Dean knelt next to her.

“Nia?” Alexa frowned as she knelt next to her new friend.

“I’m okay…just clumsy.” Nia awkwardly got to her feet. “Am I the Zombie now?”

“No, you just fell down,” Asuka answered.

Enzo and Alexa each grabbed one of Nia’s arms. “Zombie! Run!”

Seth giggled when each tried to run in a different direction, tugging Nia between them.

Dean lurched forward and tapped Alexa on her shoulder. “Zombie!”

Alexa irritably stamped her foot and released Nia.

“C’mon, Nia!” Enzo tugged on the larger girl’s arm.

Across the playground, Mickie smiled, glad to see her new student had found friends on the playground.

 

The first thing Kofi noticed was that Dean didn’t want to play dominoes. Instead, he asked for paper and crayons. Kofi placed them on the table and sat down opposite Dean as the boy began to draw. Kofi took a yellow crayon and began to draw as well.

“I have a new friend,” Dean announced, his attention on his drawing.

“Really? Someone at school?”

Dean nodded. “Her name is Nia. She’s kinda shy. She’s a flamingo.”

Kofi grinned. “A…flamingo?”

Dean nodded, looking up at the therapist. “Me and Seth and Asuka are dolphins in Ms. Flair’s class. Enzo, Alexa and Nia are flamingoes in Ms. James’ class.”

“Ah,” Kofi nodded. “I understand now.”

“She didn’t know how to play Zombie tag but we taught her.” Dean’s attention returned to his drawing.

“And how’s the decorating coming for the new baby’s room?”

“Daddy says he’s not gonna even touch it until after the hol’days,” Dean answered. “I guess ‘cause Santa might not want the mess around.”

“Good point,” Kofi acknowledged.

“But he said he’s gonna clean out the room that’s got boxes ‘n stuff it in ‘cause some of the stuff in the new baby’s room is gotta go in there ‘cause we gotta put the new baby’s stuff in the new baby’s room.”

Kofi’s head spun as he translated Dean’s sentence. “The furniture in the room now has got to be moved into another room?” he guessed after a few moments.

“Yeah,” Dean nodded. He stared at the drawing and gently put the crayon down on the table. “You said to keep Cubby with me at night,” he quietly said.

Kofi nodded. “Yes, I did.” He nodded towards the drawing. “May I see it?”

Dean scooted back from the table and nodded.

Kofi took the drawing and studied it. One monster was just as Dean had previously drawn. But the other monster’s arms were raised in front of what would have been the face. Colored over the face was a mass of gray. Slowly he put the drawing back onto the table. “What is this?” he gently asked, tapping the gray part of the drawing.

Dean swallowed and then leaned forward. “I think it was Cubby,” he whispered.

“Cubby is gray?”

“Gray and white,” Dean nodded. “But the eyes are blue. Seth said that’s why he picked it. ‘Cause my eyes are blue.” He watched as Kofi studied the drawing again. “The monsters were there…telling me I’m bad and cry. Then there was…growling but I couldn’t see what it was then…” Dean pointed at the drawing. “Doc’tr Ko-fee? Was it Cubby?”

Kofi gently flipped the drawing over and pushed it to one side. “You said you thought it was.”

“Never happened before,” Dean pointed out. He scrunched up his face in thought then shook his head. “Never.”

“You know, right now don’t worry about it,” Kofi decided. “Did the monsters come back?”

Dean started to shake his head, then shrugged. “Sorta? I don’t hear ‘em or see ‘em but…”

“You kinda ‘feel’ them?”

Dean’s eyes widened. “Yeah! I know they’re there…just can’t see or hear ‘em.”

“How about we keep Cubby with you for a while? See what happens,” Kofi suggested.

“Okay,” Dean softly replied. 

 

“Dean really thinks a stuffed animal drove away the monsters?” Roman was clearly skeptical.  
He and Bayley sat on the couch after the boys had gone to bed Facetiming with Kofi.

“A child’s imagination is a powerful tool,” Kofi pointed out. “I made a comment that wolf cubs are very protective. It’s possible that in his mind Cubby came to his defense because Cubby was in the bed with him.”

“Dean did tell Seth that Seth made the monsters not so bad,” Bayley recalled.

Roman frowned the nodded. “Yeah, he did. But why didn’t Seth appear to protect him?”

“Because Seth is his little brother and is the one **he** protects,” Kofi reasoned. “He doesn’t want the monsters around Seth.”

Bayley grimaced. “Remember, he woke up a couple of times afraid the monsters had gotten Seth.”

“Is it healthy to have Dean dependent upon a stuffed animal?” Roman worried.

“In the long run? No,” Kofi explained. “However, for right now, it’s a positive step. Obviously, a stuffed animal didn’t enter Dean’s dream and attack a monster. Whatever attacked the monster was Dean’s way of striking back.”

“Which is a good sign,” Roman nodded. He smiled when Bayley leaned against his arm.

“I see it that way,” Kofi agreed with a smile. “By the way, congratulations on the new baby.”

Bayley laughed. “Thank you. Seth took it very hard at first, but he seems enthusiastic now.”

Roman chuckled. “I don’t know who’s taking more credit. Seth or Bayley’s brother Shane. We figure she got pregnant while we were vacationing with his family in Hawaii.”

Kofi chuckled. “As long as you know who’s **really** responsible,” he winked.

 

Thanksgiving morning found Dean and Seth lying in the living room floor watching Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade while Yorkie slept beside them. From the kitchen, Bayley and Roman heard their oohs and squeals when a familiar character appeared as a gigantic balloon.

Bayley sighed in relief as she closed the oven door. “Okay, everything’s on schedule for dinner at three.”

“I told Antonio to be here around by three,” Roman mentioned as he started the dishwasher. “Sasha’s bringing the deserts?”

Bayley nodded. “She’ll be here around two as well.”

“Picking up the deserts from _Torlones_?” Roman casually asked.

“They’ll be open un…” Bayley glared at her husband then sighed when she saw his smirk. “Yes, the deserts will be from _Torlones_. Happy?”

“Ecstatic,” Roman assured her. “Sasha can’t cook.” He glanced into the living room and saw the boys’ attention was on the television. “C’mon. I want to show you something.” 

He took her hand and led her down the hallway to the small room set up as a home office. Sitting behind the desk, he pulled Bayley onto his lap and powered up his laptop. “I know you and Sasha are heading out at some ungodly hour of the morning to do Black Friday shopping,” he snorted. He flinched when Bayley smacked his arm. “But I was doing some searching on the computer and found…this.”

Bayley looked at the screen. “ _Play What You Want To Be_?” She leaned back against Roman.

Roman clicked on the screen and brought up a menu. “Look,” he eagerly pointed. “There’s an actual optometrist’s office. Seth says he wants to be like Dr. Heath, so…”

Bayley looked interested. “He could actually play at being an eye doctor.” She clicked on the link and saw a picture of a small chair with a desk, projector and eye charts. “Oh, he’d **love** this!” She smiled for a few moments, then gave her husband a wary look. “What about Dean?”

Roman ignored his wife’s narrowed eyes. “Oh, yeah,” he enthusiastically grinned. He quickly clicked on another link. “You know it.”

Bayley groaned as a mock space capsule appeared on the screen.

“It’s got working lights and sound and even videos for blast-off, landing, and outer space,” Roman chuckled. “It’ll be great! And there’s room for another person so Seth could play as well.”

“Oh, God, now both my babies will want to go to Mars,” Bayley whined.

“Aw, baby girl, it’s not like we’re encouraging them to go out and deal drugs on the street corner.” Roman hugged her tightly.

Bayley sighed. “And where will these things go?”

“I’m going to clean out that storage room,” Roman explained. “We were going to move the bed and furniture from the guest room in there and make the guest room into the nursery. We could donate the bed and other furniture and put these set-ups in that room. Move the play table from the boys’ bedroom in there and just make the whole room a playroom.”

“And if we have guests?” Bayley questioned.

“Like who?” Roman asked. “My family’s living back in Samoa. The only people in your family likely to visit overnight would be Shane and his family. We’d figure something out if they came. And Sasha can always sleep on the couch.”

“Roman!”

“Or we put the boys in one bed…that’s where they wind up anyway…and give Sasha the other bed. Or put the boys in bed with you, and I’ll take the couch.” Roman took a deep breath. “We’d work it out.”

Bayley studied him for a few seconds. “This sounds awfully important to you. Can you tell me why?”

Roman sighed. “I guess…look, we both know if the baby turns out to be a boy, Seth’s probably not going to take it well, no matter how accepting he is right now. And Dean…he’s been through a lot lately. I **know** these things are expensive, and we’re going to want to get them other gifts as well. But we can afford to bust the budget this one time. I…just want to spoil them a little.”

Bayley hugged him tightly. “I love you, Roman Reigns,” she whispered. “And you’re right. Let’s spoil them a little this year. We’ll pull the money from the trust fund.” She held up a hand to stop his objection. “No. You work hard enough. I know we said that money is for the boys’ education…well, all their education, but seriously, Roman. There’s enough money sitting in that trust fund to keep all of our children in school until they’re fifty.”

Roman chuckled. “Okay, **this** Christmas we use the trust fund.” He glanced at the laptop screen. “So, we’re okay with this? If so, I need to get it ordered now.”

Bayley nodded. “Go for it. I’ll get the money for Christmas transferred from the trust fund tomorrow.”

 

Sasha’s arrival was heralded by Yorkie’s barking and Cookie’s barking in return. “Somebody take something!” Sasha pleaded.

Roman immediately grabbed the boxes marked ‘Torlones’ and headed for the kitchen.

“Of course,” Sasha muttered.

Dean and Seth began calling the puppies to follow them so Sasha could close the front door.

Bayley released Cookie from her leash and tossed it onto a nearby chair. “Boys, take the puppies upstairs to your room to play. You’re both dressed for Thanksgiving and the puppies are clean. No playing out in the backyard.”

“Okay!” Seth led the way upstairs, his brother and two puppies following.

Bayley gave her best friend a hug. “Happy Thanksgiving.”

“Same to you.” Sasha carefully carried a plastic bowl into the kitchen.

Bayley followed, then saw what Roman was doing. “Roman, get out of those desert boxes!”

“Just checking to see what Sasha brought.” Roman innocently grinned.

“No desert unless you eat all your dinner,” Sasha firmly reminded him. “And I brought my squash casserole.”

Roman froze. “Squash casserole?”

Sasha nodded, setting the plastic bowl on the kitchen island. “Squash, peas, corn, asaigo cheese, and a few other things.”

“Sounds delicious,” Roman grunted as he walked back into the living room.

Bayley grinned. “What is it really?”

“Swedish meatballs from the deli,” Sasha shrugged. “They just need to be warmed up.” She glanced around. “What can I do to help?”

 

Totally bored with the lop-sided football game, Roman wandered into the formal dining room. Sasha was placing the silverware by the plates and curiously glanced up.

“Squash casserole?” Roman asked, studying the place settings.

Sasha smiled and nodded. “Trust me. You’ll love it.”

Roman’s reply was cut off by the doorbell.

Sasha mischievously grinned when he turned around to walk towards the front door.

Roman opened the door and smiled at Antonio. “Come on in. Thanks for coming.”

“Thank you for the invitation.” Antonio stepped into the house and automatically glanced at the television mounted on the wall. “How’s the game.”

“Boring and lop-sided,” Roman grinned, shutting the door. “Bayley! Antonio’s here!”

Bayley entered from the kitchen followed by Sasha.

“Bayley, you look wonderful as always,” Antonio greeted. He held out two bottles of wine. “I wasn’t sure which would work with what you’re serving, but the Zinfandel and Dry Riesling seemed to be safe choices.”

Bayley took the bottles and indicated Sasha. “Either are perfect, thank you. I’d like you to meet our very close friend, Sasha Banks. Sasha, this is Roman’s boss, Antonio Cesaro.”

“My pleasure, Sasha.” Antonio took her hand and bowed over it.

Sasha’s dark eyes widened. “Entirely my pleasure,” she replied, her voice slipping into a low throaty tone.

Roman’s eyes narrowed. “Antonio, would you like anything to drink? We’ll be eating soon.”

“No, nothing for me.” He smiled at Sasha. “Are you a native of Pensacola?”

Roman followed Bayley into the kitchen. “Bayley, make her stop,” he murmured.

“Stop what?” Bayley put the wine on the countertop and handed Roman a platter of sliced ham. “Take that to the dining room and then get the boys to put the puppies in the laundry room. Sasha put out food and water for them, and we’ve made a little nest for them to sleep on.”

“She’s _flirting_!” Roman hissed. “And you’ve got them sitting together at the table!”

Bayley stared at her husband in surprise. “Neither of the boys are familiar with Antonio. Why make one of them uncomfortable?” She made a shoo-ing motion with her hands.

Roman couldn’t argue that point so he took the platter of ham to the table and then walked upstairs. He noticed that Antonio and Sasha were laughing about something and shook his head.

Roman opened the door to the boys’ bedroom and grinned when he saw the puppies chasing toy cars being rolled across the floor by Seth and Dean. “Okay, guys. It’s almost time to eat. The puppies need to be put in the laundry room. Aunt Sasha put their food and water in there, and Mommy made them a nice bed.”

As the boys scrambled to their feet, Roman held up a hand. “Remember, no talking about the new baby. Mommy and I are going to announce it at the table.”

“We promise,” Seth nodded.

A minute later two boys and two puppies ran down the stairs and to the laundry room. The puppies were shooed inside and the door closed. Roman then took the boys to the downstairs bathroom to wash their hands. As they walked back towards the living room, he heard Antonio say, “You’re an interior decorator? Really? I’ve been thinking about perhaps doing something different with my condo.”

 _‘Oh my God.’_ Roman cleared his throat. “Boys, you remember Mr. Cesaro?”

“Hello.” Seth waved.

“Hello.” Dean held out his hand in greeting, which prompted Seth to do the same.

Antonio seriously shook both their hands. “It’s a pleasure to meet both of you again.”

Bayley appeared in the doorway. “Roman, can you help with the turkey? And everyone, please go ahead and sit down.”

A few minutes later, they were all seated at the table. Roman looked at the food on the table and spotted the Swedish meatballs. Narrowing his grey eyes, he looked at Sasha…who was smiling at something Antonio was saying.

“Before we begin, we have a tradition of saying what we’re grateful for,” Bayley spoke up. “Sasha, would you like to start?”

“Well, I’m thankful that I have good friends who invited me to Thanksgiving dinner when my plans changed at the proverbial last minute,” Sasha grinned.

“And I am also thankful to be spending Thanksgiving dinner with those I consider to be friends,” Antonio added. “It’s much better than eating alone in a restaurant.”

“We’re glad you both could join us,” Bayley smiled. “Dean?”

“I’m grateful that I don’t have that…that…thing in me…”

“Your appendix?” Roman guessed.

“Yeah,” Dean nodded. “I’m glad I don’t have that anymore.” He rubbed his abdomen. “That hurt,” he muttered.

“I’m glad we have Yorkie, and that Dr. Heath helped me see.” Seth blinked behind his glasses.

“Well, I’m happy there’s no squash casserole,” Roman began, glaring at Sasha. He looked down the table at Bayley. “I’m grateful to be with friends and family.” He winked at his sons who grinned back. “Most of all, I’m grateful to let our friends know that there will be a new addition to our family next Spring. My beautiful wife is pregnant.”

Sasha’s eyes widened and her mouth flew open. “Oh, Bayley!” She jumped up from the table and hugged her best friend as Dean and Seth clapped.

“Congratulations.” Antonio smiled and shook Roman’s hand.

“Boy or girl?” Sasha demanded as she sat back down.

“We don’t know yet,” Bayley admitted.

“Then may I propose a toast?” Antonio raised his glass. “To Roman and Bayley, congratulations on adding to their family. To Dean and Seth, who are going to be awesome big brothers.”

“Hear Hear!” Sasha added.

 

After dinner, the boys and puppies were allowed outside to play. Sasha and Bayley began storing the leftovers and making to-go meals for Antonio and Sasha. Suddenly Bayley began snickering. “I can’t believe Roman actually thought you made a squash casserole.”

“He should’ve known better when I said it included peas.” Sasha snorted. “Like I’d make anything with peas knowing how Dean hates them.” She hesitated then continued, “Look, I know we planned to do the Black Friday early shopping, but I think we better not. You know how crazy people get and with you being pregnant…”

Bayley nodded. “I was going to mention that,” she admitted. “Maybe we can go sometime during the day when you have some time?”

Sasha nodded. “Much better.”

“Oh, and you wouldn’t believe what Roman found on the internet for the boys…”

 

“Are you wanting a daughter this time?” Antonio asked as they watched the football game.

Roman shrugged. “A little girl would be different,” he admitted. “But I’m familiar with little boys. I think Dean’s okay either way, but Seth had a meltdown about not being the baby boy any more. So I’m thinking a little girl might be better. He wouldn’t be the baby but at least he’d be the baby boy.”

“He seemed okay about it today,” Antonio pointed out.

Roman sighed. “I think that’s mostly because he took his meltdown out on Dean and doesn’t want that to happen again.” He suddenly grinned. “At least I don’t have to add to the Christmas list this year.” He nodded at the television screen where a commercial was showing about the Black Friday bargains.

Antonio frowned. “Uh, does Bayley do Black Friday shopping?”

Roman nodded. “She and Sasha go pretty much every year. I shop online and avoid the crowds.” He saw Antonio’s expression and frowned. “What?”

“I seriously do not want to interfere, but…you **do** know how crazy it gets on Black Friday, don’t you?” Antonio asked. When Roman shrugged, he pulled out his phone. A minute later, he’d accessed a video and passed it to Roman. “This is from last year.”

Roman watched in horror as the video showed near riots breaking out as people fought over toys, electronics, clothing and other items. “Are you kidding me?”

Antonio shook his head. “Some stores have instituted a policy of only allowing a certain number of customers into the store at one time and hiring security to enforce it.”

“They’re fighting over a **doll** ,” Roman hissed. He handed Antonio the phone and got to his feet. “Oh, hell, no, Bayley’s not going,” he muttered.

 

Sasha opened the deck door and whistled for Cookie. “Come on, Cookie. Gotta go.”

The little beagle ran towards her mistress, Yorkie and the boys right behind her. 

“Do you hafta go?” Dean protested.

“Yeah, champ, I do.” Sasha clipped the leash to Cookie’s collar. “I got business to take care of tomorrow morning.”

Roman walked into the kitchen, wearing a frown. “Bayley, are you and Sasha really going out Black Friday shopping?” he demanded.

“No, we decided against it.” Bayley smiled as she watched Roman deflate, having destroyed all his arguments with one small sentence.

“Oh. Good…good decision.”

Sasha knowingly grinned at him. “Just for that, you can carry out my leftovers.”

Roman started to reply, then caught sight of his sons listening with curious looks on their faces. “Sure. No problem.”

‘Bye, Aunt Sasha.” 

Both boys hugged her and Cookie then turned around to go back outside, Seth closing the door behind them.

“Are you leaving, Sasha?” Antonio asked as he stood up when the entered the living room.

“Afraid so,” Sasha admitted. “I have to meet with a very demanding client tomorrow morning.” She smiled. “But it was wonderful meeting you.”

“Entirely my pleasure,” Antonio assured her. “Bayley, Roman, thank you again for the invitation and wonderful dinner. I should be going as well.”

“Oh, wait, I’ve made a couple of leftover trays for you as well.” Bayley rushed back into the kitchen and brought out two additional plastic containers.

“That’s most kind of you,” Antonio acknowledged with surprise as he took the containers. He turned to Roman. “Stack Sasha’s onto mine, Roman. I’ll walk her out and save you the trip.”

“Uh…sure.” Roman carefully set Sasha’s two containers onto the ones Antonio was carrying. 

“I’ll see you Monday, then.” Antonio followed Sasha to the door. “Tell your sons I said good-bye. And thank you again, Bayley, for the leftovers.”

“We enjoyed having you,” Bayley assured him with a grin. She closed the door behind them, aware of Roman heavily sighing behind her.

“That’s my **boss**.”

Bayley turned around to see Roman pinching the bridge of his nose. She nodded in agreement.

“Leaving with Sasha.”

Bayley nodded again.

Roman closed his eyes briefly, then walked towards the kitchen. “I need a beer.” 

He decided to ignore Bayley’s snickering.

 

Monday morning found Xavier Woods, Esq. entering his law office with a grin. He placed a small box of pastries onto the desk of his receptionist and assistant. 

Alicia Fox looked up, curiosity warring with suspicion. “What’s that for?”

Xavier placed a hand over his heart. “ _’The most unkindest cut of all’_ ,” he quoted.

“What do you want?” Alicia unblinkingly stared at her boss.

“Well, this is Cyber Monday…” Xavier sighed. “And I **know** you’ll be checking out the bargains…” He put a piece of paper in front of her. “Could you possibly find a set of good copper pots and pans for me? At a reasonable price?”

“Copper pots and pans? Reasonable price?” Alicia smirked. “Define reasonable.”

“Thirty bucks?”

Alicia hooted. “I saw a nice set at Macy’s for just under $500 over the weekend.”

Xavier stumbled back and slapped both hands over his heart.

“I’ll see what I can find and give you some options.” Alicia opened the pastry box and delicately removed a croissant. “But you’re going to have to loosen up the purse strings.”

Xavier dramatically sighed. “I know you’ll do your best.” He indicated the stack of mail. “Anything I need to know about?”

“Not yet,” Alicia admitted. “Give me another ten minutes to go through the rest of it.”

Xavier nodded and entered his office. “Five hundred for a bunch of pots and pans,” he muttered. He absently patted his trombone which sat on a stand in the corner. “Francesca, what’s this world coming to?” he muttered.

He sat down behind his desk and booted up his computer. He’d just opened his email when he heard Alicia screeching from the front office.

**“That son-of-a-bitch!”**

Xavier actually flinched. Alicia’s temperament was shaky on even the best of days. “Maybe I can work from home,” he mused. He was startled when the door of his office slammed open.

Alicia stood in the doorway, papers in her hand, and murder in her eyes. “Do you know what the slimy bastard’s done now?”

“Uh…which slimy bastard?” Xavier innocently asked. “I’m a lawyer. There are so many in my line of work.”

“Heyman! Paul Heyman! **THAT** slimy bastard!” Alicia howled.

Xavier grimaced. “What now?”

“Remember Roman and Bayley Reigns?”

“Sure, my clients,” Xavier carefully answered. “I did their wills, powers of attorney, adoption…” His dark eyes widened.

Alicia slammed papers down onto Xavier’s desk. “He’s petitioning to have their son’s adoption reversed!”

Xavier grabbed the papers and began reading. “He’s the attorney for Catherine Ambrose…birth mother…claiming Social Services took advantage of her diminished mental capacity when she signed away her parental rights!” Xavier’s voice rose higher and higher in pitch the further he read.

 **“THAT MOTHERFUCKING BASTARD!”** Alicia screeched.

Normally, Xavier frowned upon cursing in front of his beloved trombone, but this time he was inclined to scream the same thing.

“Uh, boss…Alicia…you guys wanna hold it down? I think you’re scaring the pigeons on the sidewalk out front.”

Xavier looked up, and Alicia spun around. In the doorway stood Xavier’s private investigator, A. J. Styles.

Styles held a cup of coffee from Starbucks in one hand as he leaned against the door jam. His blue eyes flickered from Xavier to Alicia and then back to Xavier. “Who screwed up?” he asked in his Georgian drawl.

“Paul Heyman,” Xavier seethed. He raised his fist in the air reminiscent of Scarlett O’Hara. “As God is my witness, he’s not going to win this time!”

**Author's Note:**

> Some explicit language but (imo) justified and in context. All feedback and comments welcomed! Thanks for the kudos and comments on the earlier stories.


End file.
